Not entirely ended – there’s the Regency (former Pussycat) in Sacramento, Secrets / Xanadu in SFO and a couple others in Oakland and surroundings. But certainly yes, as far as mainstream neighborhood cinemas converted into porn palaces. It was the regular customers that actually kept the place going, especially after the demise of the Burbank.

The Palm Theatre is still open and still the only X rated movie theatre on the Peninsula. I used to work at the Palm and I enjoyed it very much. It was a one man operation, the movies were on videotape and shown on the big screen (pic quality actually was good). You sold tickets, did snack bar, and worked the videos. The Palm has an opera style curtain. Chuck Mello, the manager and I tried to work it one time and dust started flying everywhere and the motor wouldn’t turn well. Too expensive to fix. We used to hit a switch and the stage lights would come on to give a intermission effect for a few seconds and when lit, you saw murals on the sides which depicts sort of picasso style drawings. The lobby has beautiful cut glass etchings behind the candy counter and at the drinking fountain. Great loyal patrons went there. I have a great pic of the interior of the auditorium and will post it here when the site allows it.

I have a very nice black and white photo of the Palm; taken from a story in the local newspaper. It’s a nice shot and I’d love to upload it, but unfortunately the Add Photo tool for this sight is broken.

William David also designed the little round Streamline Moderne building immediately on your right as you approach the Golden Gate Bridge Northbound. It was originally a restaurant, and is now a souvenier store.

The demolition of San Mateoâ€™s historic Palm Theater, set to be replaced with a 19-unit condominium building, has been postponed to next summer, the projectâ€™s architect said yesterday. While developers had initially hoped to begin demolition
and construction this month, that estimate appears to have been â€œa little optimistic,â€ architect Douglas Fong of the San Francisco-based Design + Build said yesterday. Fong said construction would probably not start until the next building season, in Summer 2005. â€œItâ€™s mainly to do with the process and just how long it takes to get a project like this designed,â€ Fong said. â€œThis will allow us to do a more thorough job.â€

City planning officials said no applications had been filed for demolition or building permits on the 1705 Palm Ave. property. The theater, which has operated as an adult cinema since 1972, remains open to business in the meantime, although the theater manager said he expected it to close. While the cause of the delay remained unclear yesterday, it appears that the sale of the property has not been completed. Currently owned by the Santa Rosa-based North American Cinemas, the property was under contract to be sold to a partnership once development plans were approved, according to Allison Borden, a city planner. No record of a sale has been filed with the San Mateo County Assessorâ€™s Office, and both Fong and Allison Borden, a city planner on the project, said they were not certain that the purchase had been completed. Fong did not return a call requesting further information on his employers, the buildingâ€™s expected purchasers. Calls to North American Cinemas were not returned yesterday. The companyâ€™s president, Daniel Tocchini, said in a letter to city officials last year that single-screen theaters such as the Palm are no longer economically viable.

City officials approved the theaterâ€™s demolition in February with the requirement that the developers document the building, which dates to 1949, and preserve as many of the interior fittings as possible. The project will also require mitigation measures for contaminated ground water under the property and asbestos in the building. The building, described as a mix of Deco, Modern and Art Deco, is eligible for the state registry of historic buildings and is the only remaining neighborhood theater in San Mateo of its era. Planning Commission members concluded it was not architecturally significant.

If you can muster the courage to be seen entering a porn theater, it’s worth the trip. The frosted glass mirror behind the candy counter depicts the seven dwarves making candy. Quite an odd sight, given the venue.

As of Sunday May 3 the building is still standing but I couldn’t tell if the theater was still operating. I haven’t seen anything in the local papers about a demolition date, but I’ll keep an eye out. It’s a pretty simple structure, so I’d guess it’ll take maybe two days to pull down and haul away.

“Motion was made by Lee, seconded by Epstein, and carried unanimously (5-0) to approve PA01-146 Palm Residences, demolition of the existing theater to allow construction of a 2-and 3-story, 19 unit residential building atop below-grade parking at 1705 Palm Avenue.”